Paddling GlovesTom Watson reviews some general optionsfor protecting hands while out paddling:Simple neoprene, poggies, scuba gloves, etcQuick Tips for Canoe Camping TripsKevin Callan passes along some simple tricks he as learned over the years aboutcamping and paddling.. with videos too!

Reviews for Pentax Optio W30 Camera

As it turns out Ė the second W30 was as big a hunk-O-junk as the first one. After three months of trying, I finally got my money back from Pentax. Lousy camera and a lousy company to do business with. One more time; The worst customer service I have ever encountered in my life and thatís saying something.

I have the W20, and it is just a fabulous camera. I have used it on several river trips now, rafting, kayaking, hiking,in clear and muddy water, dust, mud, never a problem. It takes superb photos.

I took a digital photo class, and it took photos equal to any SLR in the class in most conditions, as long as you didn't have to use a long lens(the zoom on this camera, like most "point and shoots", is minimal). The macro setting takes closeups to 1 centimeter, and the results have been amazing. Color, clarity, overall quality of the photos has been better than any point and shoot I've ever used of any size or price, and at least as good as my film SLR in most conditions.

My only real beef with the camera is the lack of a view finder, because the screen is really hard to see in bright light. I bought a little hood attachment that sticks to the screen, which helped a little with the visibility, and is a definite advantage to keep the screen from being scratched in the kind of conditions I use it in. Highly recommended.

I bought one and have regretted that purchase over and over. IMHO the Pentax Optio W30 sucks big time. I sent the first camera back for repair because of the loud clicking sound the camera made while trying to focus in movie mode. It made so much noise that it would drown out any audio you were recording at the time. I asked if this was a problem they had heard of before and the tech on the phone said ďNo, you will have to send the camera back so we can check it outĒ. Spent $34.17 sending the camera back overnight shipping because I was heading for the Grand Canyon in about 2 weeks and I bought this camera specifically for the trip. I found out later that this is a problem that goes back to the W10, continued through the W20 and is still a problem with the W30. A different tech I talked to later said ďThat was supposed to be fixed with the W30". They WILL lie to you. They will not reimburse you for shipping even though the problem is with their camera design. None of the techs would let me talk to a supervisor or anybody else in their food chain. There were many other issues I had trying to get the camera shipped back before I left on vacation. Made a bunch of phone calls and sent a bunch of emails trying to get my questions answered. Pentax has the worst customer service I have ever encountered in my life - period.

The camera ingested a large amount of water about halfway down the Grand Canyon run and quit working altogether thereby depriving me of the pictures I would have taken had I bought another camera.

After leaving the Grand Canyon, I was heading to northern Colorado to do some paddling so I called Pentax and told them that I was on the way to their headquarters in Golden and I wanted my money back. They could keep this water filled hunk of junk and use it for a fish sinker. I called them again while I was in their parking lot to let them know that I was there. I sat in their reception area for nearly an hour before anybody, besides the receptionist, would talk to me. I thought about getting arrested while I was there, then decided against it. Finally, two guys came out with a new W30 and after a half hour of talking I finally figured out that there was no way I was ever going to get my money out of these jerks - so - like a moron I took the new camera. It has the same problem as the first camera with the video.

As to the ability to see the screen, nothing you can do will make it were you can see the screen in bright sunlight. You will be reduced to pointing the camera in the general direction of what you want to photograph and pushing the shutter button.

If you own a Pentax, I wish you the best of luck. If you donít, I would recommend that you keep it that way. I donít like the camera and I really donít like the people that work for Pentax. There is a lot more to the story but I donít need to sit here and type up another couple of pages, just let me reemphasize - the worst customer service I have ever encountered. As a matter of fact - I think Iíll take another stab at getting my money back today. Iíll let you know how it works out.

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